Shaping Low Carbon Communities: new metrics, new thinking

Shaping Low-Carbon Communities: new metrics, new thinking by Warren Hatter It seems wrong to criticise the Climate Change Act; it is, after all, a worldleading piece of legislation. Yet the way it is framed has limited the scope for national and local action to reduce emissions, and encouraged local government to take a constrained view of the change required and of its own role. Yes, we are committed as a nation to an 80% reduction in emissions by 2050, the minimum demanded by the science if we are to play our part; yes, the Coalition Government has reaffirmed its support for the UK Carbon Budgets put in place to support this commitment; and, yes, it is widely recognised that this level of emissions reduction entails radical changes in housing, energy and transport. New, and more honest, approaches, though, are now emerging which enable authorities to take a wider view of what is required, and to understand how the places we shape have to differ from todays reality. It turns out that the challenge is to shape a low carbon economy, in every sense, for every locality. Metrics so far Many processes were put in place to enable authorities to respond to the demands of the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan and to measure progress within the previous governments performance framework. These, however, have a major failing. By using only production-based measures (that is, counting the actual emissions in any place, plus the emissions due to the energy used there), rather than consumption-based measures (also counting the emissions embedded in all the goods and services residents of a place buy and use), we have dodged plenty of lifestyle-related issues until now, and kidded ourselves that UK emissions are falling. In reality, our carbon footprint as a nation has been increasing; but we have off-shored much of our CO2, particularly to China1 and the proportion of our footprint we dont account for is now around half of the total. This self-deception will not last, at local, national or international level. This perspective in policy has meant that there has been no policy imperative to act on half of our carbon footprint. This, coupled with the lack of honest metrics, has been a major barrier to strategic, place-based approaches for developing low-carbon futures. Emerging metrics The next step in carbon metrics for local government is to estimate the consumption-based footprint, and act on it. A small number of authorities is doing this; below is the breakdown of the carbon footprint of the average West Sussex resident (and therefore, of the County), estimated for West Sussex
1
Brinkley,
A
&
Less,
S
(2010),
Carbon
Omissions,
Policy
Exchange
County Council.2 If you have seen breakdowns of local authority area footprints before, you will recognise that this provides a much richer, and more wide-ranging, understanding.
The Carbon Footprint of West Sussex Residents
Source: West Sussex County Council / Small World Consulting
Before indicating how this perspective can help, it is worth pointing out that it makes much more sense to people than existing measures. If you were interested in the carbon footprint of a product you buy, you wouldnt think of discounting those parts of the supply chain outside of your administrative area. Yet this is exactly what policy-makers have been doing for years. How does this perspective help, though? First, it gives us a framework on which to map current carbon reduction policies and, significantly, see which segments are not addressed. Second, by understanding the demand side (behavioural) issues and supply side issues (including infrastructure) which cause the footprint, we have a starting point for imagining, and working towards, a genuinely low carbon place.
2
For
the
national
average,
see
Berners-Lee,
M
(2010),
How
Bad
Are
Bananas?,
Profile
Books
These two approaches are, of course, linked. Lets consider some brief examples. First, in all places, most progress made has been on those emissions included in the production-based measures we have used until now, and this is continuing. For example, feed-in tariffs for PV panels and the Green Deal make it possible to construct financial packages which are beneficial to residents and authorities, though there is a real need to build high-level, expert capacity to deal with the financial and legal issues involved in the sort of large-scale investment required. Second, working strategically to improve procurement, both within the public sector and beyond, is one response to an understanding of the carbon impact of supply chains. The evidence is that driving carbon from supply chains reduces costs to a greater extent than simply saving energy, providing local businesses with competitive advantages, and enabling the local public sector to both reduce costs and lead by example. Third, when residents leisure flights represent a significant proportion of the total footprint, this can be seen as an opportunity to promote local leisure and staycations. Success would put more money in the local economy and benefit from the local multiplier effect3, as well as giving residents the chance to have lower stress, longer holidays. Links can be made with other important agendas such as developing local food and local sustainable transport. These are just three examples among many prompted by the analysis. Look at any of the segments, analyse the cause of the current footprint, and an array of opportunities is there for any authority shaping a low carbon future with its partners. This approach also provides a structure for estimating the carbon impact of initiatives and investments being considered, taking into account all aspects of the areas footprint that might be affected. Local carbon budgets If this kind of perspective helps local authorities focus on the realities of emissions reduction, it also helps make the case for local carbon budgets. Since August 2009, the UK has had carbon budgets: a finite amount of CO2 to spend across UK activities. At the moment, government departments are accountable to Parliament for different parts of the total budget; this can be seen as the other main flaw in the way policy and metrics are set out. The clearest example for this is that accountability for the homes and communities carbon budget is shared between CLG, DECC, Defra and BIS; none sits with local authorities. Yet a place-based analysis tells us that the trade-offs required to reduce emissions significantly year-on-year for decades will often be local, not national. How could the local authority run or convene carbon budget decisions locally?
3
Sacks,
J
(2002)
The
Money
Trail,
New
Economics
Foundation
This will become more and more important, as ability to emit becomes scarcer. The Lake District National Park Authority has developed a local carbon budget with partners, and both West Sussex County Council and LB Haringey are working towards one, while Friends of the Earth has received considerable senior support within local government for its campaign for local carbon budgets4; this requires close collaboration with partners, residents, businesses and civil society. Vision and narrative When we try to grasp the need to rapidly reduce the current level of emissions in the locality, the need for a vision of a low-carbon place is clear. Some authorities, working with partners, have begun to develop these, and there are a number of techniques that can be used. The most difficult aspect is finding narratives to present a low-carbon future that does not sound overtly twee or hairshirt. How can we imagine a future that factors in the values and expectations � such as privacy and choice � that we have come to expect in the developed world? Lifestyles This is the most challenging area for local government. We are getting used to having a pro-active role in initiatives to change behaviour, for example promoting modal shift towards more sustainable forms of transport away from car use. However, addressing the fact that half of the emissions for which we are responsible as individuals is due to manufacturing and consumption is no mean feat. You will struggle to find an elected member who is comfortable with telling people how to live their lives. But, along with all tiers of government and all sectors, we have to start engaging at this level, working out how to make it normal to buy less, share more, and repair not replace. +++++++ With radically reduced resources, local government is in the process of redesigning services to support resilient communities, individuals and families � the only way a big society can thrive. I see very little difference between the reality of a sustainable, low-carbon community and the sort of community described by those leading on the re-design of local services and governance. For example, a resilient community will be sheltered from food and energy insecurity, will have strong capacity and social capital, and waste little. That sounds like a low-carbon, sustainable place. These are the places of the future. In local government, we can help create them.
4
See
Friends
of
the
Earth
Briefing:
Local
Carbon
Budgets
(December
2010)
Warren Hatter is a Researcher and Advisor on climate change, behaviour change, local leadership and innovation. He set up Ripple PRD in 2006, and has held director-level positions with the Local Government Unit at market researchers MORI, the New Local Government Network think tank and the sustainability charity Forum for the Future. He blogs at www.warrenhatter.amplify.com.